News,

A row has erupted in Guatamala between the President and Congress over a law requiring the government to promote birth control and sex education. President Oscar Berger has vetoed the law but Congress has decided to enact it unilaterally, even though only 80 out of the 106 necessary legislators voted against the veto. [BBC, 2 February]

A 71-year-old man has been questioned by police over the death of his 91-year-old mother. Doctors alerted police amid suspicions that Hildegard Jones's intravenous drip was tampered with, causing a drug overdose. Frederick Jones was at his mother's bedside at St George's Hospital, Tooting, after she sustained serious injuries in a traffic accident. A police spokesman said that Mr Jones had been bailed and that the death was being treated as unexplained. [Life Style Extra, 3 February]

More than 200 Catholic doctors are expected to resign from the Australian Medical Association and the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners over their stance on the RU-486 abortion drug. Dr Terrence Kent, president of the Guild of St Luke said that there had been a lack of consultation with members by these groups prior to their decisions to support removing the Health Minister's authority to approve RU-486. "Not only does RU-486 always result in the death of an innocent human being, complications including maternal death make it totally unacceptable," said Dr Kent. [Cathnews, 3 February]

A Birmingham journalist has admitted killing her great aunt in the 1960s. Maureen Messent described in an article how a doctor left her a bottle of morphine which she gave to Eileen O'Sullivan who was in the late stages of lung cancer. The doctor came back to the house the next morning and took away the empty container. [icBirmingham, 3 February]

The Anglican Bishop of Manchester has expressed his opposition to assisted suicide in the February issue of his diocesan newspaper. Bishop Nigel McCulloch said: "With good palliative care, most deaths can be dignified and freed from great pain. This country is a world leader in palliative medicine and our hospice movement is a prime example of providing care that enables people to 'die well.'" [Christian Today, 3 February]

A Catholic priest will be manning an information stall at a sexual health lecture on Saturday, promoting abstinence. Father Stephen Boyle of the Good Shepherd Catholic Church in New Addington said: "This isn't about disagreeing with the messages of other organisations who will also be holding stalls, or about judging people. It's simply about offering a different viewpoint on the issue and I'm very grateful the mayor has allowed us to be a part of it as well." [Edgeware and Mill Hill Times, 3 February]

A US man whose daughter committed suicide a year after undergoing a secret abortion has established a foundation in her name to provide post-abortion support and advice. George J Zallie believes that Stacy's abortion experience drove her to suicide, commenting: "It took a toll on her emotionally and mentally, that she couldn't recover from it. And it just breaks my heart that she didn't open up." [Lifenews.com, 2 February]

Three women who are suing Wal-Mart for not stocking the abortifacient morning after pill planned their action with pro-abortion groups, LifeSiteNews reports. Two of the three women, Dr Rebekah Gee and Julia Battel, are activists who have been involved with promoting the morning after pill, with Ms Battel claiming on the Massachusetts' Nurses Association website that it does not cause abortion. [LifeSiteNews.com, 2 February]

A US woman who performed an illegal abortion on a 25-year-old woman that caused severe infection has been sentenced to two months probation and a $500 fine. Deva Skydancer's defence argued that she should receive a light sentence because severe infections of the kind suffered by the woman could also occur as a result of legal abortions. [LifeSiteNews.com, 2 February]

SPUC's website now has a page of links to material about life-related issues on the UK Parliament's website. The new Hansard section can be visited at http://www.spuc.org.uk/lobbying/hansard

To subscribe to SPUC's email information services, please visit www.spuc.org.uk/em-signup. The reliability of the news herein is dependent on that of the cited sources, which are paraphrased rather than quoted. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the society. © Society for the Protection of Unborn Children, 2018